As an emerging artist, I find it exciting to delve into parts of my psyche, namely the spiritual landscape. There, I know a private retreat, where there is a window, exposing both good and bad, revealing life's mysteries and miseries for my eyes only.

Color is integral to my work because it is a perfect vehicle for emotional journeys. Not only does the clarity of my turquoise create a personal connection, for it shimmers like the sea, but that it vibrates next to the warmth of my golds and purples.

Hence, combinations of color allow a sense of place and time to emerge. There is a whimsical relief from the grittiness of reality. I do admire the direct approach of Gauguin's; his bright, naked ladies lounging for us, and I aspire to the illuminations of Dega. His under-lighting is quite revealing to me. Both artists use vivid color to create emotional impact.

As a woman of color, however, I still am heavily influenced by the political infusions of the Diaspora, namely in Latin America, Middle East, and USA. This is my spiritual connection, where I return, again and again to similar types of subject matter.

Finally, my work exposes a bit of the edginess that illustrates this urban experience. Here my influences on composition and line are the artist Egon Shiele. His attenuated figures are lonely and alone, but we still feel the intimacy of the stage set. The viewer always seems to be taken into consideration.

There is this tableau that is enacted in my own work, that window, or in some cases, peepshow; now you're looking under a flipped skirt, or through the eyes of a revolutionary, or merely into a family's holiday tribute. The color, the culture, the view under, over and through, my art is my personal signature, it is who I am and cannot be altered.